Text of the provision
Art. 1718. The contractor who has undertaken to put only his work or skill, cannot claim any compensation if the work should be destroyed before its delivery, unless there has been delay in receiving it, or if the destruction was caused by the poor quality of the material, provided this fact was communicated in due time to the owner. If the material is lost through a fortuitous event, the contract is extinguished.
(1590a)
Civil Code of the Philippines, Republic Act No. 386, approved June 18, 1949, effective August 30, 1950. Reproduced in full; verified verbatim against the LawPhil and ChanRobles official-text renderings.
What this article means
A contractor who put in only labor/skill cannot claim compensation if the work is destroyed before delivery — unless the employer delayed receiving it, or the destruction was due to the poor material (timely reported). Loss of the material by fortuitous event extinguishes the contract.
Questions about this provision
- Can a labor-only contractor be paid if the work was destroyed by the owner's poor materials that he had warned about?
- Can a labor-only contractor still be paid for destroyed work if the owner delayed receiving it?
- If I supplied the materials, can a labor-only contractor still claim payment when the work is destroyed before delivery?
- What happens to a piece-of-work contract if the owner's materials are lost through a fortuitous event?
Related provisions
- Article 1717 — Loss Where Contractor Furnished Materials.
- Article 1719 — Acceptance and Hidden Defects.
Cases interpreting this article
- Authorities on this article will be added here as each is verified against primary sources.